Under the stewardship of Tura MP Conrad Sangma, the National People’s Party – founded by his late father PA Sangma -- has emerged as a force to reckon with. A constituent in Manipur’s N Biren Singh government, the NPP has now set its sights on Nagaland. It is also charged up to give the ruling Congress a run for its money in Meghalaya. Prasanta Mazumdar spoke to Conrad in the run-up to the February 27 elections in the two states. Excerpts from the interview:
Why do you think voters will seek a change this election?
Log pareshaan ho gaye hain iss sarkar se (people have got fed up with this government). There are problems and they are many. They are across the board, affecting contractors, teachers, students and the common man. People are unhappy over the Congress infighting... I think we will see a change, for people want change. I strongly feel that as a party we have been able to present ourselves as an alternative. There was a time when NPP was considered to be strong only in Garo Hills, but now people in Khasi and Jaintia Hills have also accepted it.
Why didn’t the NPP align with the BJP when they are partners in the non-Congress North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA)?
Alignment in Assembly elections is a different issue. The Naga People’s Front in Nagaland is a constituent of NEDA but it did not have any pre-poll alliance with the BJP... We like to maintain our own ideology and identity. Based on that, we are going ahead with our electoral battle.
Do you think the NPP will be able to make a difference in the Khasi and Jaintia Hills?
Earlier, people used to relate the NPP to only the Garo identity. But P A Sangma (Conrad’s late father and NPP founder) felt the NPP should be a platform for the entire Northeast. We are working hard on that and have made inroads in Manipur. We are contesting 26 seats in Nagaland, despite elections in Meghalaya. We fielded 28 candidates in the Khasi-Jaintia Hills and eight MLAs of the region recently joined us. So, clearly, people have rejected the proposition that the NPP is a party of the Garos (tribesmen).
What is the basis of your claim that the NPP has emerged as an alternative to Congress?
There is a strong wave of people coming from the Khasi and Jaintia Hills who are joining our party. Even in Garo Hills, you will find a lot of Congressmen shifting their allegiance to us. It’s not about MLAs but grassroots workers. People are choosing us as an alternative. And,why would eight sitting MLAs, five of them from the Congress, embrace NPP? This means they have been pushed by their supporters to go to NPP. I think a wave is there which is being built up.
Is Conrad Sangma the chief ministerial candidate?
I have already said that the Chief Minister will be decided by the MLAs.
Now that NPP is emerging as a powerhouse, do you miss your father (PA Sangma)?
Absolutely. The whole credit for what the NPP achieved so far goes to him. If Conrad Sangma floated his own party and tried to build it up, I don’t think he would have got the kind of response he is getting now. I think it happened solely due to the PA Sangma brandname being attached to the NPP and Conrad Sangma having his legacy... As soon as it is PA Sangma, the soft corner comes out. There is a sense that you can trust this party because it is PA Sangma’s party. Although he is not there with us, I think his legacy remains.